Lil Guys at the pool

Its true... I have THE CUTEST NEPHEWS EVER!!! Just recently we had an "Evans Family Reunion" with all my extended family in Bend, Oregon. This meant all my siblings and there families were in town for a few days before the big reunion hit. That being said, we took full advantage of Nana and Papa's pool and the beautiful weather that Oregon has offered. Below are the cute boys playing in the pool as I snapped a few shots of them enjoying each other and the cool water.

Papa with the grand-boys

Brady, Papa, Calvin

Liz's twin sister came to visit with her lil guy Owen and her husband

What every mom needs...sunshine, relaxation, and a cute pair of shades :)

Brady

Lil chunksters always eating...

Mama and Brady

Calvin

Guess thats a goodbye!

East Coasters

Summer....I hate that is almost over already! Ugh. But I can't complain, this summer has been nothing short of incredible. Even though Ky and I are on opposite sides of the country we have still been fortunate enough to travel and visit one another and do some pretty fun things together. With Kyle being in Baltimore he has had the opportunity to experience a completely different life style and I too know that I NEVER want to live in a place where the murder rate is higher than the birth rate (not really, but it sure seemed like that when I was there). Here are a few pictures from my visit to Baltimore, and over the fourth of july in Washington D.C.

We kicked off the first night in B'more with a trip to Cambdin Yards to watch an Orioles Game. It was so much fun, and had GREAT seats! Thanks to the team being not very good it was a "sit anywhere you want, not matter your ticket price." Wahoo!

When you go to the ball park you gotta embrace the entire atmosphere...so the means the food too! Here you have our healthy and delicious meal...but seriously, it tasted great!

You can only imagine the sheer happiness that shot through my entire body when I saw this GIGANTIC 5 as we were walking into the stadium...not to mention Kyle bought us official gear for the game and happen to find not only a #5 on a shirt but has Robinson on the back too! How awesome is this! Not only a favorite picture now, but a favorite shirt!

The next night we met up with some friends who are also out in B'more for the summer who are from Las Vegas. Baltimore has a great Harbor that its HUGE! Lots of fun things are always going on and its fun to just walk around and sight see.

Here we are with the original Washington Monument in the background, as we are walking to the bus station. It was so nice navigating around town because they have free...yes, FREE public transportation for anyone all over town. You would think the buses would be nasty and gross, but they were all brand new and were all electric making them good for the environment too!

Here we are at the Inner Harbor, it was such a perfect night for a leisure stroll around town. It was so nice to be back with Kyle for this trip, I truly cannot wait till these next 5 weeks are done and he is back home for good!

The crew- Zack, Ziarah, Kyle, and myself after dinner.

The next day we were lucky enough to borrow a grad student's car from Kyle's lab and drive to Washington D.C. My I might add....I had to do all the driving because someone couldn't combat with the over aggressive driving! Haha it was hilarious sitting in the passenger seat in a manuel car with Kyle driving in down town Bmore. Lets just say Im sure glad I've had previous exposure to big city driving. In the end we made it safely there and back and had a great time venturing off together for really the first time.

When we finally were able to check in to our hotel and settle it was late afternoon and thought it would be a perfect time to set out and check out the main monuments at night time under the lights. That being said, we were able to capture some pretty amazing pictures. Above you can find our dear friend Mr. Abe!

This is the Lincoln Memorial with the WWII memorial reflecting pond in front of it. Beautiful.

At the WWII Memorial, representing the state of Oregon proudly.

One of the top condentors for our favorite photographs from the trip...it was unreal in person, but the picture does a wonderful job of capturing the moment.

Washington Memorial, its the best at night time for sure! It was great because we just set out and walked everywhere in DC. We ended up finally finding a map towards the end of our wandering around and found out that with out knowing did the actual walking tour that was mapped out for tourist to do. Looks like we are pros at this thing!

Happy 4th of July!! We were lucky and made it

in time for the big Parade and had the once in a

life time experience of being in the nations

Capital for the day. We came away just

amazed at how gigantic the crowds were and

how incredible the fire work show was at

the National Mall. So much fun!

These people were EVERYWHERE trying to sell anything and everything from hats, to 'sun-brellas' to ice cubes. These two were my favorite...

During the day before we headed over to claim our spot for the firework show we went to a TON of Smithsonian's. It was great because it was so stinkin hot that it would have been unbearable to be outside. Thankfully all the museums are air condition. We got the best of both worlds. This is me, you can call me president Ashley, I stand for world peace...obviously! :)

Here we are at the capital, as you can see because it was the 4th of July, they had a lot of it all blocked off to the public for safety and so this was as close as we could get.

Also this is the beginning of the crowds on the national mall. It was absurd by the time dusk hit..

Took a little stroll by the White House. It was amazing all the squirrels we saw...man they are fed good around there! Some were so fat they could barley run across the grass.

Here we are in the heat of the late afternoon pick out spot out for the firework show. It was so hot the fire department got out hoses and began spraying people walking on the side walks...I thought I was in the ghetto! haha it was great fun though!

During the firework show...

Here we are after the firework show....the streets of DC were indescribable! I thought I was going to die right there, no joke. The crowds were so big and the traffic control was non-existent. Not to mention they shut down the subway system for safety, but when they got turned back on after the show, there were such huge masses trying to get on that they shut them back down because of all the medical emergencies. Im so glad we made it home...after walking an extra 3 miles to find an alternate route back to our hotel. Wow, what an experience!

This is the last evening we had, and what better way to spend it then heading back to the Inner Harbor eating the all too famous Crab Cakes of Baltimore. They were fabulous!! I think we found our new favorite thing to indulge in! Yumm!

Well, hope you all enjoyed this marathon of a post. Thanks for hanging in there and checking it all out. There is more to come soon...

One of a kind student = Forever remembered

Have you ever….

Have you ever had a 6^th grader throw chairs at you? CHECK

Have you ever been kicked by a student? CHECK

How about pencils, pens, and staples aimed and thrown at you? CHECK

Maybe even CD’s and plastic CD cases spiraling through the air towards you? CHECK

Have you ever been called “bleeeep beeepin beeeep bleep!!” ? CHECK

Have you ever had a 7^th grade boy smell so bad that you throw up in your mouth? CHECK

How about having a student lock himself in a classroom and not come out? CHECK

Have you ever seen a student (the one child you are totally responsible for) throw his cup of pears in the face of the principal? CHECK

Have you ever been surrounded by the most amazing people who lift you up each day? CHECK

How about teachers being soo supportive and kind? CHECK

Maybe even loving your job so much that you continue to wake up each morning knowing full well that you might come into contact with flying objects? CHECK

If any of you have had experience with any of these too…BLESS YOU!

I have just complete my first official job at a local middle school here in Corvallis, and have had the time of my life working one-on-one with a 6^th grade Autistic boy and in the afternoons working hand-in-hand with severely low IQ 6^th, 7^th, and 8^th graders. I am so lucky to have found something that I LOVE doing each day. From the above ‘have you ever’ you would think I would quit after my first encounter….but oddly it is the most amazing and rewarding work I could ever imagine. Never was there a single dull moment in the last 6 months.

The people I worked with are total saints! I am so much better as an educator, person, and future mother from working with these amazing people who have taught me so much. Here are a few pictures of these incredible people that I have been surrounded with.

I am so sad so have said goodbye to them all, but I am so excited about what is to come in the fall with Graduate School and hopefully creating a classroom someday like the ones I have been a part of.

What I would do with out my ladies...thank heavens for them...and Mike!

LRC, Life Skills, and CLASS program all together

Lisa ( each day I would walk into work and she would say, "Ash, are you SURE you want to work in special education?"), Patrick, Christine, and me...the power 4!

Bitter Sweet

Graduation. It was much anticipated, and there was so so much time and effort involved in the last four years of my life towards accomplishing this goal. One which was so important to me, so I only found it fitting to have my biggest fans right by my side on the big day. To everyone who has helped me along the loooong road...Thank you! Truly, there is no way I could have done it with out each of you. There is a quote somewhere out there that says something like, each person who comes into your life leaves a footprint in our soul, well I can attest to this. Each person, no matter the significance has helped shaped me into the individual I have become. I know that sound totally cliche, but it is so true. Thank you to all of you out there...

But wait, the journey is NOT over! Graduate school beings in a few months...so here is to having a FABULOUS summer and enjoying no work, all play, and sun tans!

CHEERS!!

Wahoo! I did it!!

My Number 1 Fan!

My Other Number 1 Fan!

My In-Laws, soo supportive!

Mr. Wisdom himself...thank you for always giving me the BEST advice!

Alllllll the graduates...some 5,000!

I felt like a football player rushing the field! So many people!

Just a little thought...

So I've been thinking lately, just reflecting on a few things in my life lately and this is something I came across the other day in my old computer that I used through out my college career. As I began browsing I came across this that one of my good friends who played softball at osu had written about being an athlete in college. I thought it would be cool to put it up on my blog because I have a lot of friends who are still in the midst of college sports and I know that they are going through all of this and would totally understand. So for those of you who arent big into sports, sorry! But Im sure you might be able to find a parallel somewhere in your life :) Anyways, here it is! Hope you enjoy it...

An Athlete...


It’s when you’re so exhausted. So stressed out and burdened with work that you feel you are being crushed under every single engagement you’ve ever had. The weight is extreme. It is unexplainable. It is so heavy it seems only a miracle can get you out. It’s when you lose absolutely every bit of energy you have, when you give every bit of time you have, to improve and better your knowledge and yourself, only to discover that your efforts fall short of your expectations and theirs. When you are so tired, so delirious from lack of sleep that you cannot remember what day of the week it is. It is when you exude so much physical energy in the betterment of your second job as an athlete, that every blood vessel in your grave eyes make themselves known through the best of crimson colors. When you cannot stand up straight anymore. When even jeans and a t-shirt is too much effort, and cotton sweat pants become your wardrobe. When injury after injury after injury makes you question your own youth and you begin to wonder how long you will be able to survive. When the torment from your self expectation to perform begins to build so much that you know nothing will ever be good enough. When you realize the path you are on will never end. When this life becomes questionable. When we feel as though we cannot go on any longer…we realize what it’s all for. For those 75 points…those 90 minutes…that 1 hour…those 10 seconds. We become who we always were inside. We find our calling. We are reminded why it is that we play. For the miracle points. For the plays that cannot explain themselves. For a chance to live the dream. For the moments that will never come again. And when we finish, we leave it all out on that wood court, that clean field, that smooth water, that hard track. And this makes that arena sacred. It gives our life purpose. Because it helps us escape who we have to be in the real world, and feeds the hunger that makes us athletes.

Thank gooooooodness for Skype!!

As you all may know by now, Kyle is long gone! Just kidding, (kinda) he has made his way to Baltimore for the next 10 weeks, which doesn't sound all too terrible...but let me tell you- its awful! I hate that fact that we cant be together at night and have dinner together, and me taking waaay too long of showers in the morning so that he runs out of hot water, and having fun laughing, and most importantly just having each other to talk to and build each other up. I guess this is just what has to happen right now though...so whats that old saying? Ah, yes...I believe it is "Suck it up Ash!" It will all be over soon enough, and (hopefully) I won't ever have to do it again!

Tonight was GREAT! I am soooo thankful for Skype in this generation!! Needless to say its not the same as having a face-to-face conversation, I'll take what I can get...and it is good enough for me! Kyle and I will be doing this EVERY night and taking full advantage of the F.R.E.E. phone calls.

It was a VERY busy last week with him trying to take finals 2 weeks early and ontop of that complete the usual homework loads. Needless to say, he managed to survive. Great Job! But even more exciting was that he won an award for the TOP SENIOR AT OREGON STATE! Which means, a nice dinner, dessert, getting to dress up, and be a supportive wife and tag along in going to the award banquet. Great job KROB!!!

Well folks, there you have it! Thats what new with the Robinsons! Hope everyone is doing well, and that this awful weather will turn around soon! ITS SUMMA TYME!!!

At the corvallis Farmers Market

End of the year BBQ with a few of Kyle's engineering classmates

Kyle and I with Dr. Skip (one of Kyles professors)

The famous guy himself...rockin' the cane after getting the award

If you know one thing about me....

Then you would know that my ALL-TIME FAVORITE NUMBER is 5!!!!! Which is why today is such a great day!

Happy 5 Months of marriage today D.K.R!! Its amazing how fast time passes by, before we know realize it, were going to be married 5 years! Yay for being married and happily in love...to many, MANY, more months!